The Roswell Report: Case Closed

Fig. 33. llx iirst “spacedoclor;
Lt. Cd John P Stapp (now il
retired Colonel) being \trappcd
into the rocket sled Sun;, Wind
NX 1, on December IO. ,954.
al Holloman AFB, N.M.
Cuurageously, Stapp was his
own vo,m,eer subject on 2’)
rocket sled tests and earned
IWO awards of the Legion of
Merit and the Chrney Award
for valor and self-sacrifice.
ILLS. Air Fort photo)
On a typical flight the dummies were separated from the balloon by radio
command and descended by parachutc5’ Prompt recovery of the dummies
and their suspension racks, which usually did not land in the same location
resulting in extensive ground and air searches, was rssential for researchers
to evaluate information collected by the instrumentation and cameras. To
assist the recovery personnel, a variety of methods were used to enhance
the visibility of the dummies: smoke grenades, pigment powder, and
brightly colored parachute canopies.” Also. recovery notices promising
a $25 reward were taped to an exposed portion of a dummy.” Local
newspapers and radio stations were contacted when equipment was lost.“”
The Bravest Man
America was introduced to Cal. John Paul Stapp on December 10,
1954, when he became known i,\ both the “the hra\:esc” and “the f,~stest”
man on earth. Stappearned these titles following a rocket sled test that
accelerated him to 632 miles per hour. He reached this speed in just five
seconds-faster than a 45 caliber bullet--and was decelerated to a stop in
I .4 seconds. subjecting his body to more then 42 rimes the force of gravity!
While this was America’s inlroduction to Cal. Srapp. the 1954 rocket sled
test that examined aircraft restraint devices and human responses to
accelerativeldcuelcrative forces and windblast, was just one of many
achievements of this legendary Air Force physician.
Born in Bahia, Brazil to American missionary parents, Stapp sold
pots and pans door to door during the Depression while he earned both
undergraduare and graduate degrees in zoology and chemistry at Baylor
University. He went on to earn a doctorate in biophysics from the University
of Texas, and a doctorate in medicine from the University of Minnesola.
In 1944 Stapp entered the U.S. Army Air Forces and became a flight
surgeon. From 1946 to 1963, due to his unique qualifications in biophysics
and medicine, he conducted a series of acuelerationidecrleration experiments
on the high-speed track at Muroc (now Edwards AFB); Calif..h’ and later a1
Holloman AFB, N.M. Developments from these and other studies resulted
31